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How to print PCB images on laser printer to scale? Answered

I have a Samsung laser printer. Many of he PCB board designs found on he internet are only simply image files and are not associated with a specific PCB design program. My question is what free mage software is available to print an image of a PCB board to scale.

3 Replies

In addition to GIMP, give a look to Paint.Net. It is 100% free and has a similar look and feel to Photoshop. Paint.net uses standard print drivers, so using a 1:1 scale will provide you with what you need, as long as the original is a 1:1 representation of the PCB layout.

It seems like most programs for viewing image files have settings under the print setup menu which can be used to scale an image that you want to print. I would experiment with those and adjust as needed to get the right proportions.

One handy thing to use as a reference for dimensions is the pads for a DIP component or any other with known dimensions. For example, the pin to pin spacing on a DIP is 0.1", you can measure it on your print out to make sure your scale isn't too small or to large.

Make sure to select "keep aspect ratio" if such an option appears under any print setup menu, to ensure that you have the same scale in both the x and y axes.